Advertising machinery.



W. I.. HILDBURGH. ADVERTISING MACHINERY.

APPLlcAnoN FILED ocr. 23. 1909.

I 1,172,455. Patented Feb. 22,1916.

5 SHEETS-SHEET I- Witness s WQ@ y W i NUDI' l mi W. L. HILDBURGH.

ADVERTISING MACHINERY. APPLICATION FILED ocT.23.19o9.

1,172,455. Patented Feb. 22,1916.

5 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

/QQZ. V v l,

Attorneys.

W. I.. HILDBURGH.

ADVERTISING MACHINERY.

APPLICATION FILED ocr. 2s. 1909.

1,172,455. Patented Feb.22,1916.

5 SHEETS- SHEET 3.

Witnesses Attorney..

THE COLUMBIA PLANOUHAPM Coq WA'SHINGTCIN, lv?. C.

w. L. HILDBURGH.:V

ADVERTISING MACHINERY. APPLICATION FILED OCT. 2773, 1909.

1,172,455. Patented Feb. 22,1916.

, 5 SHEETS-SHEET 4* Bananen nanna Attorneys.

THE COLUMBIA PLANOGRAPH C0., WASHINGTGN. D. C.

. L. HILDBURGH.

ADVERTISING MACHINERY.

APPLICATION FILED OCT. 23 1909. 1,172,455, Patented-Feb. 22, 1916.

5 SHEETS-SHEET 5.

A ttorneys.

I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I Witnesses WALTER LEO HILDBURGH, F WESTMINSTER, LONDON, ENGLAND.

ADVERTISING MACHINERY.

Specication of Letters Patent. y

Patented. Een. 22, 191e.

Application filed October 23, 1909. Serial No. 524,165.

To all l07mm t may concern:

Be it known that I, VALTER LEo HILD- BURGH, a citizen of the United States of America, and residing at St. Ermins Hotel, llVestminster, London, in the county of Middlesex, England, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Advertising Machinery, of which the following is a specilication.l

Hy invention relates to improvements in devices for producing changes in designs for advertising or other purposes and is especially applicable to devices in which a plurality of relatively movable plates is employed. One of said plates is provided with visual openings equally spaced in parallel lines and the other plate is provided with visual areas so arranged that, by the rela.- tive movement of the plates. some of the areas of the second plate will be brought into coincidence with some of the openings in the first plate and produce a desired image. v

The present invention comprises a plate having regularly disposed visual areas, a second suitably designed marked plate and mechanism for imparting intermittent movement to the plates` relatively to each other according to a. controllable and predetermined plan.

The object of my invention is to produce a device for giving the required relative movement to the plates, such a device being automatic in its movements inasmuch as it will continue to exhibit 'the different designs in their regular order as long as the apparatus is in operation. This and further objects will appear from the embodiment of mv invention set forth in the following specification and accompanying drawings considered together or separately. I attain these objects by the mechanism illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which the same4 reference characters in# dicate similar parts in all the figures and in Figure v1a is a diagram Ishowing the positions of vthe blocks for presenting thirty independent designs when used in coniunction with a. suitable opaque plate. Fig. 1c is a view showing the visual areas in a unit area of the marked plate. Fig. 2a is a plan view of a. device for changing the position of themovable plate. Fig. 2b is an end elevation of the same. F ig. 3'- is-aplan-view.

of a portion of a cylinder provided with grooves for operating the movable plate'. Fig. t is a sectional view of the same. Fig. 5 is a side view of Fig. 3. Fig. 6 is a plan view of a device for' operating the rapparatus by hand. Fig. 7 is a plan view of a modication of a portion of the device shown in Fig. 3. Figs. 8, 9, l0 and 11 show further modifications of the same. Fig. 12 is a longitudinal section of a number of ele' ments such as those shown lin Figs. 3 and 4. Fig. 13 is a plan view of a structure having a large number of elements such as are shown in Fig. 7. Fig. 14 is a side elevation of the same. Fig. 15 is a diagrammatic view of a device for moving a frame in a plurality of directions. Fig. 16 is a plan view of a device similar to that shown in Fig. l5, but provided with electrical operating means. Fig. 17 is a view of a perforated card for controlling the electrical impulses fo-r operating a series of pairs of escapements, as shownin Fig. 16. Fig. 18 is a view showing an arrangement of lenses for concentrating the illumination on the openings of the opaque plate. Fig. 19 is a diagram of the allotment of the divisions of each unit of a movable plate displaying the characters I, T, H, N, O and vacancy. Fig. 20 shows vthe forms of the letters as they will appear to the yobserver in front of the fixed plate. Fig. 21 is a diagrammatic view of the preferred form of the entire apparatus. Fig. 22 is a diagrammatic view showing a set of frames and rollers for guiding the movable plate along twoA lines perpendicular to each other.' Fig. Q3 is an elevation of a portion of a stationary plate. Fig. 24 is a similar view of a portion of a movable plate.

In this specication, I shall refer, `without. limiting myself to the conditions .im-

plied by those terms. to the plate havingv theregularly disposed openings as the stationary' plate and the other plate as the movable plate. I shall, for convenience of reference, describe hereinV a pair of plates capable of showing the letters ofthe English alphabet, a hyphen an apostrophe C), the character i and (&) and vacancyy and having these thirtv designs arranged in the order shown in Fig. 1a.

The mechanism described herein may bev divided into two classes; onelin which the movable plate* is raisedV above the vlevelA rer quired and is allowed to descend and come to rest at that level, and the other in which the plate is raised to the level required and exhibited. The movable plate for a thirty design pair of plates may be divided into a number of rectangular units corresponding in size with those into which the stationary plate may be divided. In these units, 1/30 part, similarly placed in each, is devoted to the areas required for the presentation of some one design. Fig. la is a diagram showing the allotment of the thirty parts of each unit orp the movable plate, the first space representing vacancy, and the following spaces the various letters and punctuation marks selected for presentation. JV hen any visual area in the movable plate is opposite an opening in the stationary plate, the design` composed of the areas ot' the series which is represented by that area will appear through the rstationary plate. It we assume that the width ot a unit is .5 inch and its depth .6 inch, each division of that unit will be .lx1 inch, and a movement of the movable plate each .l inch, either hori-` zontally or vertically, will cause the areas of a different series of divisions to be opposite the openings of the stationary plate and a diderent design to appear.

As shown in Figs. l? and 2l the openings in the plates are smaller than the divisions of `the unit area and, therefore, the dimensions ot the openings, in the direction of the movement of the plate, will be smaller than the extent of one step oit' said movement in that direction. By making the openings smaller than the divisions of the unit area,

there will always be a strip oi2 opaque ma` shown in Figs. 2 and 2b, but it is preferably accomplished by having the ball bearing g at the lower end of the rod a of Fig. 2" rest on a moving device having high and low parts. As the device is moved to bring a high part under the rod, the frame carrying the plate will be elevated the required height. Various forms of such a device are shown in the drawings.

In the embodiment shown in Figs. 2 and 2", I provide a clamp b in which the plate may be secured. The clamp is provided with a vertical rod a and two vertical guide pins 0-0. The vertical members are guided in acarriage a, which may be slid along horizontal rods m-m-m- In the manual operation of the device, the rod may be grasped by the hand and the carriage moved along the rods m to a predetermined point. The rod a may now be raised the required distance and the `design will appear.

Figs'-i2l .and 22 show another method of.l

rests upon the lower level, the moi/ableVV plate will be in its lowest position, and when theend of the rod is raised, by thev move` ment of theelement, the plate will be raised to the requiredk position. T he element sup- 1 porting the end of the rod is stepped horizontally so that, in addition to raisingtlfie` rod, and with it the movable plate, it will also move the plate the required distance horizontally. separateelement is used to secure each de.- sign-exhibited, and when a series of designs is to be shown in succession, a series of ele'- ments is employed to pass in the desired order beneath the end otthe rod. In Fig. 12, I show a series of such elements in; section with4 the rod a in lowered position. at: the right and a second rod on a higher level at the left.

In Fig. 3 I shovv1 a plan view of elements used to exhibit the characters R. K and'I. yIn Fig. 5 I show a side view of the element forshowing the letter "Ii I show,I inv plan and side views, an ele-e ment for transmitting horizontal movements l to the lrod a, and 1n Figs. l0 and 11. plan and side views of'an element to give the vertical movements. In Figs. 13 and 14e I show a plan and a side view of a ksingle .clef

ment for giving both'movements of the rod.

In Figs. 8, 4 and 5 I show the elements carried on the surface of a cylinder, to which of the/rod a. In this form of the apparatus,

there is a single element ca able of giving' to the rod a the positions necessary for presenting a design and the element is moved in the direction of itslength.

The devices above described are of what I term. the simple` type, as distinguished from the multiple type, which will be hereinafter described. of apparatus may be used .in various situations; it may, for example, be used with relatively movable plates bearing advertising` inscriptions for `window or other displays,or it may be used with single letters It will be understood that a In Figs. `8 andi) The simple type- .115 in F ig. 6 sliding' into place beneath the end to be presented in succession and thus forming words, or with single words presented in succession and thus forming sentences for the same purpose; or it may be used in theaters or other places to announce to the spectators the numbers or names of per* formances, performers or competitors, as a carriage call or any other signaling purposes.

In the foregoing description, it has been assumed that the relative movements o-f the plates have been controlled by the direct mechanical action of the controlling mechanism, bu't it is obvious that the connection between the rod a and the frame carrying the movable plate may be replaced by lsome other form o-f connection without departing from the spirit or scope of myinvention.`

As described, the plate operating devices may be controlled by handA orbymeans of a suitable cylinder, but I preferfin general, to control the positions by kmeans of an electromagnetic system such as I will now proceed to describe.

Referring now to the preferred embodiment of the invention wherein the plate is raised above the required level at each operation of the device and allowed to descend and come to rest at the required level to give the proper showing of the design, attention is directed to Fig. 15, wherein a represents the rod `carrying the movable plate, and n the carriage .mounted on guides m. Engaging the lower end of the rod is an element :0, comprising a series o-f steps. This element, when moved in the direction of the arrow, will allow the rod and plate to drop successively from one step to the next lower. Projecting laterally from the carriage 'my' is a finger p, provided with a bent extremity. This -finger engages a stepped element o. TWhen the element is moved in the direction of the arrow, the spring attached to the carriage will draw l the latter to the left, so that the nger 7J will successively move from the to-p to the bottomy step of the element, thereby giving the plate v a step-by-step movement in that direction. The steps of the elements 0` and a are each exactly equal in height to the horizontal and vertical movements of the plate, and if the plates be correctly adjusted with respect to thelower end of the rod a', each movement of the element o will allow the plate to move to correspond to a horizontal line of designsfor example', E, F. G. H. I or T,

U, V, W, X (see Fig. la) and each movement of the element ai will allow the plate to move vertically to a distance to correspond with a vertical line of designs, as A, F, K, P, U, Z or C, H, M, R, Wr.` It will be seen that instead of the elements o and 05, the elements shown in Figs. 8 and 9 may be used to impart horizontal movement to the rod,

andthatshown in IigsalO.andl'lv tomove it vertically, or the structure shown in Figs. 13 and 14 may bel used to move the rod both vertically and horizontally. Referring to Fig. 16,1it will be seen that each of the elements 0 and w is attached to a spring y, which tends to move -it so that the lowest step of each element comes beneath its corresponding rod.- Against these pulls the elements are held by means of es-. capements t-L, but each will be set free for a movement forward, corresponding to one step .each time that an impulse passes through its magnet S, or S2. v It is evident that if the rods d and p be at the tops of the two elements, and that if this position correspond to vacancy, if one impulse be sent through the magnetSl, the rod a will fall until arrested by the next lower step andthe design E will appear. If, on the other hand, an impulse be sent through the magnet S2 instead, the rod p* will be pulled to the left bythe carr-iage spring, and the design A will be shown. Again, if one impulse be sent through S1 and one through S2, F willbe brought into position, or if three impulses `be sent `through S, and two through S. Q will show, and so on. For the purpose of securing kthese impulses, I prefer to use a perforated card or plate z, preferably of the form shown in Figs. 17 and 21, moving in unison with the driving mechanism, and through theA perforations conducting brushes will malre electrical contact with a cylinder' g as the perforations pass beneath them. This card, as shown, corresponds to a portion of one line of designs and each pair of lines of perfor-ations (or marks where holes may be' punched) controls one movable plate; a portion of sucha card corresponding to the design M upon one of such plates is shown at .e in Fig. 21. This card is shown as being formed of one piece, with the perforations punched therein. A number of such cards may be fastened together, along their broader edges,l to form a more or less continuous strip. y

In Fig. 21 I showdia'grammatically the preferred embodiment of my invention. In this figure I have shown a frame t, in which are mounted two sets of stationary and movable plates, each set capable of exhibiting a plurality of designs. The stationary plates vare carried directly by the frame t. The

frame t is provided at its top and bottom with rollers t2, and` these rollers guide the horizontal movements of frames Fh. of these frames Fh carries a set of rollers 7 which guide the vertical movements of a frame FV, and to this frame is secured the movable plate. Each framev F,1 is provided with a spring fh, and these springs are secured `to the frame t in such a manner as to resist movement of the frames Fh' to the right in the.igure.,...To.the lower railt.Y .of

Each v the trame t is pivoted a lever at for each movable plate. Each lever is provided with a roller a5, upon which rests the frame Fh, and with a downwardly extending arm a6 which engages its corresponding rotatable block :04. Mounted on the rail t is a lever ZV, which engages the under side of the lever, @Sand is provided with a slotted arm 7:4. Mounted lin the trame t is a reciprocating bar tot, and projecting from one side of the bar is a pin for engagement with the slot in the arm et. Each block ot and et is provided with a laterally projecting pin 05 and and these pins are adapted to be engaged by a hook y corresponding to each block, and pivotally carried by the loar wt. Depending yfrom each frame Fh is a bracket provided at its lower end with a foot pt, which is arranged in the path ot the bloei-r 0t and engages with a lpredetermined step on the bloei: to arrest the movement .of the frame tothe left in the ligure. Carried by the bar wt is a ringer Zh lor engagement with each bracket to move it to the right when the hards reciprocated in that direction. The shaft of each bloei; ot and mt is provided with a spring y* to turnthe block in 'the direction opposed to the pull of the hooks y and the shafts are held against the tension of the springs by the escapements rhe eseapements ot the blocks 0^L and et are controlled by electromagnets S5 and S4 respectively. The magnets are each arranged in circuit with a drum g and brushes g cooperating therewith. Jljassing over the drum is a series of perforated cards .e ot insulating material. The pertof rations in the card correspond with one line of designs, and as a certain line ot perforations passes beneath the brushes, contacts are made which send the nroper impulses through the magnet S, to bring the proper steps ot the block fc* beneath the lever a* and arrest the downward movementot .the plate at the predetermined point.' At the same time, the proper impulses will loe through Athe magnet S5 to stop the `move.- ment` of the plate to the lett by the engagement oli the foot 724 'with the proper step on the block ot.

T he drum may be rotated in the following manner: @ne end oi' the drum g is provided with a series of projecting pins g2 arranged in the path of a linger l@ carried by acontinuously rotating shaft la. As the shaft rotates the linger ZC will strike a pin g2 and move the drum through the part olf a revoJ lution suliicient to feed a card under the brushes y. /arried on one end of the shaft la is a cam Z which, at each revolution of the shaft, will engage a roller @UY on the bar 'wt and move the latter to the right. A sp 1ingflex attached to the bar and to the ltr-ame t' will move the bar wx to the left when the earn Z passes the roller.

sent i The bar fwL extends the entire width of the main frame of the apparatus, and lat.

movements to the left 1 will be sin'iilarlyY stopped by the blocks ot.

ln practice I preferably arrange the plates with respect to anfilluminating means, so that the rays of light will pass through the openings, therein directly to the eyes.

ot the observer,'but\vl1en the number of openings of a combination in the stationary plate is small I may use lenses se, as shown in F ig. 18, to concentrate the light on the apertures. These lenses will ser-ve several purposes: lirst,y to. collect thelight from a large area and cause it to pass through an aperture in the plate; and lsecond, to cause the light to be distributed after it has passed through the aperture.-

lhe operation of. the embodiment.` illustrated in Fig. Qlis as follmvs: A card e,

having been punched to permit of the proper contacts .being made =is secured to other cards perforated to admit of other combinations of contacts beingy made and the strip of cards thus produced. is passed around the .drum y and between it and the brushes,` so that it will move at the same speed as the v surface orp the drum and allow the proper circuits to be made when the perforations comeunder the ends of the brushes and allow them to come in contact with the drum. The drum is provided with a commutator and brush, making a common return. .The revolution of the shaft Z"i and the cam Z, will reciprocate the bar w* against the tension el' `its spring. This. movement of the bar will, through its engagement with the slotted'ends et of the lever ZH, cause them to tilt. the levers fr?, and through them raise` the frames E, to the limit or' theirrvertical movements.r the same time, the fingers ZM will engage the brackets p* onv the frames Fh and 'move them to the right, each against the tension of its spring fh and to the limit or" its movement in that. direction. This moveient of the bar to the right will causethe hooks y to engage the pins 05 and .e5 ony the stepped plates o* and ze* and rotate them against the tension ofl their springs yt. The plates Awill now 4be in such a position that the openings are all masked and no light will pass through them.. The linger ZC on the shaft Za will kengage successively with the pins g2 on the arm. g thereby turning the latter in the directiono'fv the arrow and feeding .the strip e. The revolution ot' the drum carrying the cards or stripe with it will, when the brushes inaliecontact with the surface thereof through the perforations in the strip, energize the magnets S4 and once for each perforation, passing under the. brush, and the energization and deenergization of the magnets will operate the escapements L"L and permit the springs y* torotate the stepped blocks with a step-bystep movement, .one step for each perforation in the card through which the brush engages the drum and. completes the circuit to its magnet. It will be understood that each magnet is wired in series with its own brush and with the conimutator brush, and that there is a line of perforaticns or places where perforations may be placed traveling under each brush except the commutator brush.

lVhen the bar has reached thev limit of its movement to the right, its spring wx will move it to the left, and this movement will swing the levers Zmand withdraw the support from the frames FV. movement of the bar co4, the fingers Zh, will be moved from their engagement with the brackets p4 and the frames Fh, and with them the frames FV will be moved to the left by means of their springs fh. The stepped blocks 04, having in the meanwhile been rotated a step for each perforation over which the brush for its magnet has passed, will be in position to arrest the spring actuated movement oi' the frame Fh to the left by reason of the engagement of the brackets p* with the steps selected. The stepped blocks m4 having been set in similar manner will intercept the ends of the levers a4 and arrest the downward movement oaf the frames FV. The selected perforations in the movable plates will come opposite corresponding openings in the stationary plates, and the desired design will appear. This operation will be repeatedas long as the drum g 1s rotated.

It will be seen that for each reciprocation of the bar 104 to the right, the springs y will be wound exactly the same amount as they were permitted to be unwound by the operation of the, escapement.

In the embodiment-of the invention illustrated, the specic arrangement of the means for moving the reciprocating bar Q04, the specific arrangement of the contact making devices and their relation to the cam, and the specific mounting of the escapement devices are merely illustrative and form no part of applicants invention.

The improved plates hereinbefore .disclosed are not claimed in this application, but form the subject matter of my application for patent Serial No. 519,597, tiled September 25,1909.

Having now described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is: n

1. In a device of the character described,

By the same` the combination; with a pair of relatively lmovableA superposed plates, one plate having equallyspaced visual areas, the othervplate having groups of similar visual areas, said groups being so arranged that by the relative shifting-oit' the plates the groups of visual areas on the second plate may be successively caused to coperate with the visual areas on the first plateto thereby produce a succession 'of predetermined images, means for moving one plate a distance approximately` equal to the distance between areas in the i'irst plate, means for returning said plate toward its normal position, and means for intercepting the return of the plate, said tive shifting of the plates the groups of visual areas on the second plate may be successively caused to coperate with the visual areas on the first plate to thereby produce a succession of predetermined images, a reciprocating member, and means carried thereby for movingone plate a distance approximately equal to the distance between areas on the first plate, means for returning said plate to its normal position, and rotatablel .devices for intercepting the return movement of the plate, said devices permitting a step-by-step movement of said plate.

3. In a device of the character described,

the. combination with a pair of relatively movable superposed plates, one plate having equally spaced visual areas, the other plate having groups of similar visual areas, said groups being so arranged that by the relative shifting of the plates the groups of visual areas on the second plate may be successively caused to coperate with the visual areas on the first plate to thereby produce a succession of predetermined images, a reciprocating member, and means carried thereby for moving one plate in two directions perpendicular to each other for a distance in each direction approximately equal rto the distance in that direction between areas on the `first plate, means forV permitting the return of said plate to its'normal position, and a rotatable device for intercepting the return movement in each direction, said devices permitting a step-by-step movement of said plate.

1. In a device of the character described,

iio

the combination with a pair of relatively -f movable superposed plates, one plate having equally spaced visual areas, the other plate having groups of similar visual areas, said groups being so arranged that by the relative shifting of the plates the groups of visual areas on the second plate may be suc-` cesslvely caused to coperate with 'the visual.

areas on the irst plate to thereby produce a succession of predetermined images, a reciprocating member, means carried thereby for moving one plate in two directions perpendicular to each other for a distance in each direction approximately equal to the dis tance in that direction between areas on the first plate, means for permitting the return of said plate to its normal position, a rota-` Copies of this` patent may be` obtained. for ve cents each, by addressingy the FCommissoner of Patents,`

Washington, D. C. 

